Badmaash Is Open on Abbot Kinney, and It Is Not the Same Menu

Badmaash opened its Venice dining room at 1616 Abbot Kinney Boulevard on March 27, taking over a space that previously held Yours Truly, Piccolo and Capri. The family had been running a pickup window out of the same address before converting it into a full restaurant.

It is the third Badmaash. Nakul and Arjun Mahendro opened the first in Downtown Los Angeles in 2013 after the family relocated from Toronto, followed by a Fairfax location in 2020. They are also behind the La Brea Avenue burger shop Burgers 99 and a window at Chinatown's Pacific Electric.

Abbot Kinney was reportedly the goal from the beginning. Nakul Mahendro has said he told his father on his first day in Los Angeles that the street was where the family needed a restaurant, though an early attempt at a Venice property did not come together.

What is different here

The Venice menu is not a copy of the other two. Longtime signatures carry over, including the chicken tikka poutine, the spiced lamb burger and Punjabi chickpeas, alongside coconut curry mussels. But the kitchen has added dishes built for the neighborhood, including steak frites, garlic naan, and a whipped ricotta toast with jam made from tamarind, cane sugar, kumquat and blood orange. Hamachi appears in a crudo treated with an Indian palate. Saffron tres leches closes the menu.

Ahead of the opening, Nakul Mahendro described a deliberate shift toward brothy soups, raw preparations and lighter plates, framing it as a response to how people are eating now rather than a break from what Badmaash does.

The space includes a semi-open kitchen, a long bar, a communal back room and outdoor patio seating, which is a first for the brand.

If you go

Badmaash Venice is at 1616 Abbot Kinney Boulevard in Venice. The dining room serves Wednesday through Sunday from 4:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. and is closed Monday and Tuesday. The phone number is (310) 310-2580. Menus for all three locations, reservations and online ordering are at badmaashla.com.

Hours and menus change. Confirm directly with the restaurant before you go.

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